The movement of Indian workers to Gulf countries started in the seventies. Now this population has increased to more than 87 lakhs. But the condition of migrants who came to earn better money is not that good. Now Saudi Arabia is bringing a new law to correct the injustice being done to the workers to some extent. With the implementation of the Migrant Domestic Workers Law, the Kafala system responsible for inhumane conditions will be completely abolished.
Which countries are included in the Gulf?
The countries whose borders meet the Persian Gulf are called Gulf or Gulf countries. These include 6 countries – Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates. Although Iran and Iraq are also connected to the Persian Gulf, they are not part of the Gulf Cooperation Council, nor do many Indians go there to work.
How many Indians are there in the Gulf?
The Ministry of External Affairs had said in response to an RTI that about 10.34 million NRIs are living in more than 2 hundred countries. Of these, there are about 3.5 million Indians in UAE, 2.59 million in Saudi Arabia, 1.02 in Kuwait, 74 lakh in Qatar, 7 lakh in Oman, while 3.25 lakh are Indians in Bahrain.
After the oil boom in the seventies, these countries started developing rapidly. Especially there was a boom in infrastructure. People also started looking for help in household work. In such a situation, Indian workers were a good option. They were also willing to come, and did more work for less money compared to workers in other countries. Now the salary bracket is fixed but it is rarely followed.
Indian workers are dying continuously
How the people who go to work from our place live there can be gauged from the data. Between 2014 and 2023, approximately 63 lakh workers were seriously injured while working. Whereas in the year 2022, more than 6 thousand workers died. The death toll is continuously increasing. During the question-answer session in the Lok Sabha, it was told that the highest number of deaths were seen in Saudi Arabia, where about 11 thousand such workers, who had gone from India completely healthy, died in a year.
Who are migrant domestic workers?
Now Migrant Domestic Workers Act will be included in the labor laws of these countries. This is that category of workers who work at homes or for homes. For example, in Saudi there are 14 types of people who fall in this category. These include domestic help, drivers, nannies, nurses, tailors, farmers, physiotherapists and people providing speech and hearing therapy. According to the data, at present there are 20 lakh people in the servant and house cleaner sub-category, out of which 60 percent are women. Whereas men are taken for the job of driver.
What is Kafala settlement?
It is believed that due to this, foreign laborers are facing losses. If you want to understand the bookish definition of Kafala, then it is a sponsorship system, which happens between the foreign worker and his local sponsor. In this, the employer is called Kafeel, to whom the government of Kuwait or other Gulf countries gives the right to sponsorship permit. Kafeel is often a factory owner. Through permits, it can invite foreign laborers to its place. In return, they pay the labourer’s travel, accommodation and food expenses.
In which countries this system
Kafala is visible throughout the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi, the UAE, Jordan and Lebanon. This system continued to get embroiled in controversies.
what is wrong with this
This gives the employer too much power over his employee. To put it simply, the worker becomes the slave of his master. His working hours are very long and the salary is not fixed. Many employers even keep the passports of their workers with them so that they cannot run away anywhere. They are not even allowed to keep their phones or go out of the work area. They do not get leave on any day of the week. They cannot even return to their country because their passports have been confiscated.
Is it banned in any country?
When the issue was raised in the United Nations, many countries talked about abolishing Kafala, but it could not be stopped completely. The owners pack the workers inside the factory so that the work can be done whenever they want. The governments of Gulf countries have the advantage that their production continues to be done at low prices. American think tank – Council on Foreign Relations had also done a major report on the Kafala system. After much uproar, Bahrain and Qatar said that it had been stopped in their countries.
What other dangers
– In Gulf countries, all the documents of the worker are taken as soon as they reach under Kafala. They don’t even have a phone to report an accident.
– Foreign workers are kept inside the factory so that they can work for 15-16 hours. Up to two dozen people are crammed into one room.
– Visa trading is also a big problem. The sponsor sells the visa of any laborer who comes to him to someone else. This happens illegally. The new owner can get more laborious or more risky work done at a lower cost.
– Since this system does not come under the Labor Ministry, workers have neither any rights nor any protection from risk. They need their sponsor’s permission to take leave, leave work or leave the country.
What will happen when the new law comes?
Under the new law, workers cannot be required to work for more than 10 hours. Besides, they will also get one weekly leave. The sponsor will not be able to keep their documents, such as passport. In certain circumstances the worker will have the right to leave work. Every year he will get one month paid leave, and the expenses for traveling to and from the country will also be borne by the employer.
Saudi Arabia has accepted all these things under the Wage Protection System since July and it will be implemented by the end of 2025.